HxH: Ryomen... Satoru?

"Do you have any medicine for blood replenishment?" Cyr asked naturally.

"Blood replenishment? You need this kind of medicine?" The gloomy shopkeeper, his movements stiff and slow like an old, poorly maintained machine, turned his head.

He lifted his head slightly, and his hood fell back, revealing the upper half of his face.

Unfortunately, he wasn't the noseless Voldemort Cyr had half-expected. Instead, his features were unexpectedly decent.

It was the kind of face—melancholic and mysterious—that might appeal to a certain demographic.

The shopkeeper stared at the white-haired boy with pitch-black, lifeless eyes for a long moment before slowly lowering his gaze again.

"You do seem to need this. By the way, do you want something to help relax your mind?" He picked up a small calculator as he asked.

"Relax my mind…? You don't mean some kind of illegal drug, do you?" Cyr's voice was skeptical.

The kind of drug that makes people float in a dreamy haze, weightless and euphoric. If it were that kind of thing, would reporting it to the Hunter Association even work?

"Whatever you're imagining, my shop doesn't sell illegal substances. This is simply an incense blend that promotes restful sleep," the shopkeeper replied in a flat, emotionless tone. His voice carried no inflection, as though his emotions were set to neutral.

"I'll take it." Cyr nodded thoughtfully. But just as he finished speaking, he turned sharply toward the door.

Through his Six Eyes, he sensed a powerful life force approaching, one even stronger than the shopkeeper's.

Three, two, one.

The door slammed open with a loud bang, hitting the wall hard enough to make the wooden shelves shake.

"Jordan! What's the task this time…" The new arrival's voice trailed off as his gaze fell on Cyr.

"The total is 13,770 Jenny," the shop owner said, tapping numbers into his calculator.

"Materials from nen beasts are more expensive due to their rarity and the difficulty of harvesting them," he added, as though preemptively justifying the cost.

Cyr's eyes twitched slightly. Buying medicine here cost him more than a bit in one go. Apparently, maintaining good health was a costly affair no matter which world you were in.

"Fine." Cyr shrugged, taking off his backpack and signaling for the shopkeeper to pack the items into it.

With the transaction complete, the shop owner finally directed his attention to the new visitor.

The newcomer was tall and muscular, with a tanned complexion that made his bright white teeth stand out even more when he grinned.

"Do you need something?" The shop owner asked. Even when speaking to someone familiar, his voice remained as flat and lifeless as before.

"I'm here to submit a task. These are the materials you needed. I spent a whole month in the nen beast forest to collect them!" The man dropped a large sack onto the counter, grinning widely. Then, turning toward Cyr, he added with a thumbs-up:

"Jordan's medicines are famous for being worth every penny!"

Cyr ignored him, instead taking his newly packed backpack and slinging it over his shoulder. Despite the shopkeeper's gloomy demeanor, Cyr noticed that all the medicine bottles were neatly labeled with clear instructions.

He pulled out a bottle designed to treat his seafood allergy and popped two pills into his mouth. They tasted of strawberries—no surprise, considering the strawberry tortoise fruit must have been an ingredient.

"Understood. Thank you for your hard work," The shop owner, now known as Jordan, said after glancing at the sack's contents and placing them behind the counter. He then turned his gaze toward the lingering visitor, silently asking for his purpose.

"Uh… well," the man scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "Someone at home has a fever, so I need some medicine. Also, give me some of that incense you mentioned earlier. And the usual insect repellents for the wild. Pack them up, same as always."

"Strawberry-flavored, please," he emphasized.

Ah, so the mark on the door of this pharmacy was meant to attract hunter clientele.

Even if hunters themselves rarely fell ill, their family and friends might still need treatment. These people also made up the shop's target customers.

For hunters, the price of these medicines wasn't particularly expensive.

And judging from what was said earlier, this shop even assigned hunters tasks to collect medicinal ingredients?

It was like an NPC in a game handing out quests to players.

Cyr pondered this silently. After the man left, he turned to the shopkeeper. "Do you have any tasks?" he asked directly.

The shopkeeper stared at him for a long moment before slowly responding, "Do you have a hunter's license?"

Cyr stayed silent, and the shopkeeper immediately understood the answer.

"Come back after you've obtained a hunter's license. I only give tasks to hunters," the shopkeeper said.

Got it—tasks that required fulfilling certain conditions first.

Well, forget it. By the time he earned a hunter's license, he'd probably lose interest in these so-called tasks anyway.

After all, there were so many exciting places waiting for him to explore.

Having failed to get a task, Cyr slung his bag over his shoulder and walked out.

"Do visit again..." the shopkeeper's flat voice trailed behind him, elongated and unhurried.

The anti-allergy medicine came in pill form, while the blood-replenishing medicine was packaged as powdered sachets for brewing, and the incense was a solid black block.

Cyr found a cup and brewed two packs of the blood-replenishing powder at once.

"Now I won't have to worry about nosebleeds causing anemia," he thought aloud, sitting by the seaside and sipping the hot tonic.

The red swelling caused by his allergies subsided rapidly after he took the medicine.

And he still had a full bottle of the anti-allergy pills left.

"No more worrying about seafood allergies stopping me from enjoying seafood," he said cheerfully.

As long as he could take the medicine fast enough, allergies wouldn't be a problem.

"For the next couple of days, I'll just have fun here." He packed away his cup and stood, heading toward an inn.

The inns near the port were small, with the luxurious hotels further away. But the port area had plenty of food stalls offering fresh, locally caught ingredients. It was bustling with people, lively, and even hosted events from time to time.

For example—a food challenge.

Cyr stopped in his tracks, his gaze first landing on a signboard, then sweeping over the crowd in the shop.

The number of patrons suggested the food here was pretty good.

"Don't miss out! Our food challenge: finish everything within 30 minutes to win a month of free meals. Fail, and you'll have to pay for what you eat!" The shopkeeper, wearing a white apron, announced loudly through a megaphone.

A crowd had already gathered to watch the competition, though all challengers so far had failed.

"Count me in," Cyr said, stepping forward and raising his hand.

"A kid? How much can a kid even eat?"

"Isn't this just throwing money at the shopkeeper?"

"Better quit now while you can! Otherwise, your parents will scold you for wasting money."

"Hahaha!"

The crowd chuckled, half out of amusement, half out of goodwill.

Without changing his expression, Cyr, dressed like an emperor, sat down at the table.

Thirty minutes later, the restaurant owner reluctantly announced through the megaphone, "Congratulations to this young man for completing the challenge! You've earned a month of free meals!"

"Finally full," Cyr exhaled in relief, patting his stomach.

Ever since his transmigration, his appetite had grown significantly. After this binge, he finally understood just how much he could eat.

Fifty portions of food in one sitting, and his stomach still looked unchanged.

He had become a genuine bottomless pit.

°°°

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